2025年6月9日，上外中东研究所刘中民教授就中国对海湾四国公民免签证接受Global Times采访（见Global Times2025年6月10日第4版），全文如下：
With expansion of 4 Gulf countries, China implements unilateral visa-free policy for 47 nations
China began to implement a trial visa-free policy on Monday for ordinary passport holders from Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain, expanding the nation's unilateral visa-free circle of friends to 47 countries.
From June 9, 2025, to June 8, 2026, passport holders from these countries and whose transit does not exceed 30 days may enter China for business, tourism, visiting relatives and friends, exchanges or transit without a visa.
With the United Arab Emirates and Qatar having implemented reciprocal visa-free policies with China since 2018, China now grants visa-free treatment to all Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.
Speaking at a press conference on May 28, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said, We welcome more friends from GCC countries to visit China anytime.
Hebah Abbas, chief engineer and technical adviser of the Ministry of Education in Kuwait who is also the chairwoman of the Sustainability Committee at the Kuwait Water Association and a member of AmCham Kuwait, said this policy greatly facilitates her visits to China to explore renewable energy projects, attend environmental conferences and engage in technical exchanges with Chinese companies, adding that the access lays a foundation for mutually beneficial partnerships, the Xinhua News Agency reported.
China's visa-free treatment for all GCC countries marks a significant step in deepening people-to-people exchanges between China and the region, Liu Zhongmin, a professor from the Middle East Studies Institute of Shanghai International Studies University, told the Global Times on Monday.
China and Gulf countries have maintained strong relations, Liu noted, adding that as political mutual trust and friendly ties continue to strengthen, facilitating people-to-people exchanges through visa-free arrangements and providing greater convenience is also important.
As an important measure of China's new round of opening-up, the visa-free policy will elevate the level and quality of exchanges, facilitate greater movement of people and stimulate trade, investment and goods circulation, Zhu Yongbiao, the executive director of the Research Center for the Belt and Road at Lanzhou University, told the Global Times. He added that China's previous opening-up initiatives have already yielded significant results.
On June 1, China's unilateral visa-free program was for the first time extended to Latin American and Caribbean countries. With the expansion of the four Gulf countries this time, China has now expanded its unilateral visa-free policy to a total of 47 countries, Xinhua reported.
The growing visa-free list shows China's firm resolve in expanding high-level opening-up, and the various measures China has taken to ease cross-border travel are all part of China's concrete action to create an open global economy, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said during a press conference on June 3.
Lin added that China will continue to improve entry policies and add more countries to the visa-free list. We welcome more foreign friends to visit China for excellent purchase experience, diverse consumption scenarios and more convenient services. China is committed to greater openness and deeper cooperation for shared prosperity with the rest of the world.
来源：Global Times
（本文观点仅为作者或被访者个人观点，不代表本研究机构立场）
